The Shores of Tripoli by R. Lee Walters
Shortly after America became a nation, its navy and merchant marine fell outside the protection of the French and British navies. The young nation needed to fend for itself on the high seas, as well as in matters of international politics. America’s navy was small. Ships were expensive. The loss of British and French influence to protect American shipping inspired a group of North African pirates, known as the Barbary States, to attack U.S. ships.These pirates had long been a terror for the nations of Europe, and now they attacked Americans because the Americans were not strong enough to resist them. The nations of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunis preyed on American ships for many years. They stole gold and valuables, pilfered merchant goods, sunk vessels, and took innocent citizens as slaves. American allies, namely the French, advised the United States to pay the pirates’ ransom demands. The U.S. Congress budgeted money to pay tribute to the Barbary States for over 20 years, but this money was seldom enough. It was a large strain on the United States economy as well. Tributes to the pirates accounted for 20% of the U.S. annual budget. Americans were becoming very angry at this arrangement. They began to build warships.When Thomas Jefferson became president in 1801, he flat out refused to pay tribute to the pirates. This infuriated the Pasha of Tripoli, and he declared war against the United States. Congress allowed Jefferson to attack without a formal declaration of war. The Barbary pirates soon found that the American navy was a formidable opponent. American shipbuilding ingenuity helped the country design small, fast frigates with thick hulls that were very rugged. The pirates knew of no way to sink them. In addition, America had been building warships for over 20 years. The nation was able to send many frigates to deal with the pirate threat. After the U.S. navy defeated the pirates at sea, American marines landed along the shores and took several pirate towns. Seeing that his forces were too small to combat the American threat, the Pasha signed a peace agreement and returned American captives.The war against the Barbary pirates demonstrated that the American navy was capable to defend American shipping and interests worldwide. The American military had won its first foreign war, and it proved that Americans could fight as one nation rather than a loose collection of states.

What is a synonymfor the underlinedword in the following sentence from the passage?American shipbuilding ingenuityhelped the country design small, fast frigates with thick hulls that were very rugged. A.clumsinessB.productionC.hesitationD.brilliance